


Rites of Passage

by PrettyTheWorld, TrueIllusion



Series: Fatherhood [2]
Category: Queer as Folk (US)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, Family, Father-Son Relationship, Future Fic, Light Angst, M/M, New York City, One Shot, Parenthood, Parenting Drama, Post-Canon, Sexy Times, they're versatile
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 06:55:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18566236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrettyTheWorld/pseuds/PrettyTheWorld, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrueIllusion/pseuds/TrueIllusion
Summary: “Sonny Boy--” Brian began, intentionally ignoring Justin’s question.“--You had no idea why she sent me down,” Gus interrupted, his words more of a statement.Brian shook his head. “Your mother neglected to inform me of her intentions.”***Lindsay has ulterior motives when she sends Gus for an unscheduled weekend visit with Brian and Justin.





	Rites of Passage

**Author's Note:**

> This is our second round-robin effort -- we might be addicted! Hope you enjoy reading as much as we enjoyed writing! :) 
> 
> AN: Gus uses "Ima" to refer to Melanie, which is a Hebrew word for "mom" -- in our head-canon, he chose it himself, and Mel was tickled by the sentiment

“So I was thinking,” Lindsay said, pausing long enough for Brian to wonder just how much he wasn’t going to like what was coming next. 

“Uh huh,” Brian said, adjusting the phone against his ear. There was a certain inevitability about Lindsay using that tone -- there was no _might_ not like it -- so he just needed to brace himself and wait for it. 

What came next, however, surprised him. 

“I was thinking,” Lindsay repeated, “that you might like to have your son for a long weekend. Say maybe this Friday?”

“Friday as in three days from now?” Brian asked, certain that his eyebrows were practically touching his hairline. Gus’ visits were nearly always meticulously scheduled and planned weeks, if not months in advance, to ensure coordination with everyone’s schedules. Lindsay suggesting an impromptu visit was nearly unheard of. 

“Is that okay? I realize it’s last minute, so I understand if you and Justin already have plans.”

“No,” Brian said quickly. “Nothing we can’t adjust. If he wants to come Friday, I can take care of his flight when we hang up. He can use my points.” 

“That would be lovely,” Lindsay agreed. “Thanks.” 

“Sure. I’ll forward you the information as soon as it’s confirmed.” 

They hashed out a few other details before switching back to smalltalk and their usual catching up. Lindsay was in the middle of recounting a particularly ornery client she’d assisted at the gallery when J.R. started shrieking up a storm in the background, in some sort of heated argument with Melanie. Lindsay excused herself to referee so Brian headed into the kitchen where Justin was stirring something intended for their dinner. He looked up and smiled when Brian entered, holding up his wooden spoon to offer a taste.

“Mmm,” Brian hummed appreciatively, letting the spicy Jambalaya flavors roll around his tongue. “That never gets old.” 

Justin laughed. “Even though you pretended to hate it the first time I made it for you?”

Brian scoffed. “I didn’t pretend to hate it. I’m pretty sure I even told you it was good.”

“Yeah, when you had leftovers the next day.”

“Thought it was always better the second day.” Brian smirked. 

“Touché,” Justin smiled softly. It still made his stomach flutter to realize that, despite the lack of interest Brian had pretended to have in anything besides Justin’s ass during the early days of their relationship, he really had been paying quite a bit of attention. 

“So,” Brian said, shifting gears. He took a seat at the island counter so he could watch Justin as he finished cooking. “Seems we’re getting a visitor this weekend.” 

“We are?”

“Lindsay just called. Evidently Sonny Boy has requested an impromptu visit to the Big Apple.” 

Justin’s eyes widened. “And Linds agreed?”

“I know!” 

“Do you think something happened?” Justin wondered, his eyes narrowing in thought. 

Brian shrugged. “I guess maybe, but usually I’d get some sort of pissy text from him, begging me to save him, if so. I haven’t heard a peep about this.” 

Brian definitely wasn’t going to complain about Gus coming to visit, although he did have to admit he was more than a bit suspicious of the circumstances. Lindsay had never been a spur-of-the-moment girl. She was a planner, and the sheer thought of doing anything big at a moment’s notice had always been enough to send her into a panic. Even when they’d been in college, Lindsay had never been one to just take off for the weekend with a few girlfriends or her significant other -- who, for a brief time, had been Brian himself.

“Maybe he just misses his old man.” Justin shrugged, leaning forward to turn off the stove.

“Or maybe he needs a break from all of the estrogen in that house.” Brian shuddered -- he couldn’t imagine living with Mel and Linds and a 12-year-old female version of Michael. That, in and of itself, was a scary enough thought.

Justin laughed and moved the pot of jambalaya off of the hot burner. “Well, I think we can provide respite here in New York,” he said.

Brian slid his laptop out of the bag he’d tossed haphazardly onto the island when he came home from work and opened it up so he could book Gus’ flights. When he was finished, he sent Lindsay the details as promised, and hoped that perhaps she might elaborate on the reason she was sending Gus down there on a random weekend in March. But, no such luck. All she said was, “Great, thanks.”

All through dinner and the rest of that evening, and for most of the next three days, Brian felt like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop -- waiting for that pissy text from Gus that might tip him off as to why his son was being sent to spend the weekend with his fathers. But, no such luck there either. Maybe Justin was right and he did just want to come and visit. Still, something didn’t add up.

Brian left the office early on Friday, much to Cynthia’s surprise, so he could meet Gus at the airport. He spent the entire car ride thinking about the presentation he’d given before lunch and wondering why he wasted his time and efforts with this particular client, who was never happy with anything he came up with and always micromanaged everything until they might as well have just come up with the damn campaign themselves instead of paying Brian to do it. But he supposed that was the answer -- they were paying him, and paying him well. He hadn’t made his millions by turning away clients -- he’d done it by doing whatever they asked him to do, even if he sometimes had to grit his teeth and bite his tongue.

When he embraced Gus outside of the security checkpoint, he was reminded of another reason why he worked so hard. For the past 16 years, it hadn’t only been about himself and making sure he’d never have to ask anyone for anything. Brian still remembered Michael telling him on the night Gus was born that for the next 18 years, he’d be going to work every day to support his kid. But it really hadn’t been that bad. Mel and Linds didn’t ask him for much, although he did sometimes feel like he was only really called on as a father whenever they needed money or if Gus had done something that Mel had determined must have been due to his “Kinney genes.” Still, Brian wanted Gus to have every opportunity he hadn’t had growing up.

Sometimes Brian wanted to be more involved than he actually was, although he knew he’d given all of that up when he’d signed away his parental rights to Melanie when Gus was just a baby. He had to be thankful for whatever he got, and this weekend, he was just going to enjoy spending time with his son.

“Can we get something to eat?” Gus asked, no sooner than the car had picked them up at JFK. “I’m fucking starving.”

Brian gave his son an exaggerated warning look. “Language, youngster.” 

Gus just rolled his eyes in response. “Yeah right, shining example,” he said, and smirked when he noticed his dad’s lips roll inward, attempting to conceal his smile. 

They settled on a Thai place not far from Brian’s office, sharing steamed dumplings, shrimp fried rice, and basil chicken as they caught up on the last few days of Gus’ life.

Brian took a sip of his sake and gave Gus an annoyed look when his son took a noisy final slurp from his Vietnamese iced coffee. “I refuse to take any responsibility for your substandard dining manners,” he intoned. 

Gus simply shrugged and said, “Guess you get to take responsibility for other stuff then.” He ignored the confused look Brian gave him, then excused himself to use the restroom as Brian signaled for the check. 

When they got back to the apartment, Justin was home from work and watching an episode of “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” on Netflix. He set aside his plate of leftover pasta from the night before, paused the show, and stood to greet them, giving Gus a big hug and Brian a kiss.

“You taste like pesto,” Brian commented, licking his lips once they separated. 

Justin smiled sheepishly. “When you texted that you guys were stopping for food, I figured I’d better eat something, even if we grab more food later.”

“I swear to god, your stomach is like a black hole,” Brian commented, though he was smiling fondly. 

“You say that like it’s something new.” Justin turned his attention to Gus. “So, Gus-man, how’s everything, how was your trip in?”

“There was a baby behind me who screamed for the entire flight.” Gus rolled his eyes. “Thank god for noise-cancelling headphones, although I’m pretty sure this kid was part banshee because I could still hear them, even with my headphones on. Please tell me I wasn’t ever like that.”

“Well, we never had you on a plane, but no, I think you were pretty quiet most of the time,” Brian said. “You were a good baby.” At least, from what he could remember, Gus had been a good baby. Sometimes he still wished he’d taken more time with his son when he was younger, before testicular cancer and someone planting a bomb at Babylon had made Brian reconsider his life and how he was spending his time on this earth. But he couldn’t change the past. All he could do was exactly what he’d been doing for the past twelve years -- trying to make the present and the future the best they could possibly be.

That was why he’d made certain that Lindsay didn’t forget her promise to let Gus visit him during the summer -- even that first time, when she’d sounded shocked that he’d brought it up, as if she thought he couldn’t have been serious. Like there was no way he could possibly want to spend two weeks taking care of their then-five-year-old son. He was dead serious, though, and he’d always put a lot of effort into making sure the time Gus spent with him was memorable.

“So what sort of trouble are we going to get into tonight?” Justin’s voice brought Brian back out of his thoughts.

“I don’t know,” Brian said, stifling a yawn that was no doubt the result of the early morning he’d had -- the price he paid for being able to take most of the afternoon off. “Any requests, Sonny Boy?”

Usually Gus was chomping at the bit, full of a million suggestions for things he wanted to do during his time in New York, not all of which were always entirely feasible, but it didn’t stop him from trying. This time, however, his enthusiasm seemed uncharacteristically absent. 

“I dunno, like…” he trailed off, his voice stilted and uncertain, and simply shrugged. 

Brian furrowed his brow. “Are you feeling okay? You’re not sick from the Thai food, are you?” he asked, trying to gauge his own body for any signs of potential food poisoning, but everything felt normal, and Gus didn’t really look like he felt sick anyway. 

“I’m fine,” Gus said, picking at a hangnail on his index finger. 

Justin decided to jump in, hoping to save the evening before Brian and Gus could get into an awkward question-and-answer stalemate. Delicately approaching situations was not always Brian’s forte, and to Justin, it appeared that Gus had something on his mind, but wasn’t yet ready to address it. “How about a movie?” he suggested, figuring it would get them out of the house, but wouldn’t necessarily require active conversation. 

“Sure,” Gus agreed, sounding relieved, and actually smiling at the idea. “Which one?”

Brian joined in the discussion, also seeming pleased that a new direction had been established. They settled on the newest Marvel film and Brian found a showing at a small cinema nearby that had a Gus-and-Justin-approved snack bar, and Brian-approved luxury reclining seats. 

Justin spent the minutes before the movie started wondering what was bothering Gus, who had seemed off from the moment he and Brian walked through the door. But Justin couldn’t figure out what on earth he could possibly be hesitant to talk to them about. He felt like they were pretty open-minded parents, and he knew Mel and Linds were too. The way Gus was acting reminded him a little of how he’d felt around his own parents once he’d known he was gay and was struggling to figure out how to tell them. But surely Gus wouldn’t hesitate to be honest with them about that, being that all four of his parents were gay. Besides, Gus was 16 years old, and he’d only ever seemed to be interested in girls. Even though Brian sometimes pretended to be disappointed that his son was straight, Justin knew that it really wasn’t a big deal, and none of the four of them wanted to make it into one, because all four knew what it was like to have to hide a huge part of your identity from people who were supposed to love you unconditionally.

So if it wasn’t something like that, what was it? Why did it seem like there was something Gus was afraid to say?

Justin observed Gus and Brian’s quiet conversation about school and potential college choices until the lights dimmed and the previews started, but he wasn’t able to pick up any clues. Soon, they were absorbed in the film, and all else was forgotten, at least for the time being.

As Justin had predicted would happen, Brian claimed he didn’t want anything except his jack-and-coke from the theatre’s bar, then ended up eating a good portion of the bucket of popcorn Justin had purchased for himself and Gus to share. The whole way home, Gus chattered excitedly about the movie, now behaving a lot more like his normal self than he had been just a couple of hours before. Maybe nothing was wrong, after all. Maybe he’d just been tired from the flight, or still irritated about the crying baby, or perhaps he really had come to New York for respite from some sort of situation at home that Brian and Justin didn’t know about. Whatever it was, Gus seemed fine now.

They watched television together for a while before retiring to their separate bedrooms a little before midnight. Gus had definitely inherited his father’s night owl tendencies, which Justin knew often started fights with his mothers, particularly during the school year, but since Brian and Justin only had him during the summer and during school breaks, it had never been much of a concern for them. Besides, once Gus was old enough to entertain himself, it had really been a moot point, because even if they sent him to bed, he’d still stay up reading or playing video games until the wee hours of the morning, claiming he wasn’t tired. So Justin didn’t think much about hearing the sound of the television coming out of Gus’ room as he headed toward the master bedroom.

Brian had already gone to take a shower, so Justin wasn’t surprised to see him emerge from the bathroom, still naked and toweling at his hair a few minutes later. What was a little surprising was his obvious state of arousal. 

“Looks like you have some big plans tonight,” Justin teased, his double entendre not lost at all on Brian, who gave a small knowing smirk. 

“Well, everything with Sonny Boy seems settled for the night, so I figured we could find our own form of entertainment,” he replied, shrugging. He tossed his towel in the laundry basket and then moved to the bed and positioned himself against the pillows, watching as Justin finished shedding his own clothing. 

“I don’t know,” Justin said, climbing onto the mattress and flopping down on his front, a good foot or so away from Brian. “I thought we were just going to sleep.” 

Brian glanced over at his partner’s prone form and frowned. “Are you that tired?” he asked, poking at Justin’s bicep with his index finger. 

“It’s been a long day,” Justin replied, then yawned. 

“But you only work a half-day on Fridays. And it’s barely midnight. And I’m so fucking hard right now,” Brian argued, pouting only because Justin wasn’t actually looking at him to see it. 

Justin sighed. “Can’t you just take care of it yourself? You’ve got a hand, don’t you?”

Now Brian’s eyes narrowed, and he started feeling a little irritated. “What the fuck?” he snapped. “What’s your problem?” 

Justin raised his head, glancing over at Brian warily. “What?”

“Forget it,” Brian decided, belatedly realizing that his erection had flagged a bit. 

“Sorry,” Justin said. “Kiss me goodnight, at least?”

“Fine,” Brian grumbled, tugging at Justin’s arm to get him to roll over, at least, so he could kiss him properly. 

Justin obliged, and when he did, his “tired” smile morphed into a shit-eating grin. Brian realized why when he glanced down and saw that Justin was, in fact, completely ready to go, his dick standing tall and proud as he pulled Brian down for a deep kiss, reaching to give his erection a few quick strokes that had it filling back up almost immediately. 

“You fucking tease,” Brian murmured, threading his fingers through Justin’s hair. 

Justin moved himself so that he was straddling Brian’s body, gently grinding his ass against Brian’s cock. “Do you honestly think I could ever say no to this?” he said in a low voice, before leaning down to kiss Brian again. “No matter how tired I was?”

“You always did like falling asleep with it inside you,” Brian breathed, and by the end of the night, they proceeded to do just that.

***

Gus was awake and eating a bowl of Frosted Flakes when Brian and Justin made their way into the kitchen the next morning, both having overslept a little due to their late-night escapades. 

“Morning, Sonny Boy,” Brian greeted him before turning to flick on the coffee maker. 

Gus gave something that sounded like an affirmative grunt, but did little more than cast a wary look in the direction of both of his dads. Justin was in the process of scanning the refrigerator contents, before pulling out smoothie ingredients, and caught the tail end of Gus’ trepidation before he looked back down at his breakfast. 

“Everything okay?” Justin asked, trying to keep his tone casual. Evidently what they’d thought had settled the night before was not so; it had just gone temporarily dormant. 

Brian turned around upon hearing Justin’s question and gave his son a calculating look. Gus stared back at them both, and then sighed heavily.

“Look, can we just get this over with?”

“What are you talking about?” Brian asked, abandoning his post at the coffee maker to join Gus at the table. “Get what over with?”

Gus rolled his eyes. “I know Mom told you. So if you don’t want to do it, can you at least just tell me, and we can all forget about it?”

Justin joined them now too, sitting next to Brian, so they were both facing Gus across the table. “What did Lindsay tell us?”

Upon realizing that his dads both looked fairly equally confused, his eyes widened. “Fuck, you really don’t know?”

Brian and Justin glanced at each other, and then Brian spoke first. “It sounds like you should probably start talking. Now.” 

Gus suddenly looked very uncomfortable. “Uh…” he stammered. “So… Mom caught me, um…”

“What?” Brian interrupted him, but before Brian could throw out a few options for what Lindsay could have possibly caught Gus doing, Justin stopped him with a hand on his forearm.

“Let him talk,” Justin said, glancing at Brian, then looking back at Gus, who was studying his half-eaten bowl of cereal as if it held some sort of secret.

Brian let a few seconds of silence pass, then said, “Go on, Sonny Boy. What did your mom catch you doing?”

“I was, um…” Gus ran a hand through his hair nervously, then said, much more loudly, “Fuck, I was masturbating, okay?!”

Brian and Justin both stared at Gus, wide-eyed, still not quite sure how this ended in Lindsay sending Gus to New York for the weekend.

“Okay,” Justin said slowly, dragging out the vowels. “And that was a problem because…?”

Gus sighed. “Okay, um, I guess because it wasn’t exactly _me_ doing the masturbating.” He paused and gave a forced chuckle. “Obviously that part isn’t a problem. Hell, I’ve been doing it to myself since I was like, 12.”

“I did not need to know that,” Brian muttered under his breath. Justin’s hand tightened on his forearm.

“So who was doing it, then?” Justin asked, keeping his tone conversational and light.

Gus shifted uncomfortably “Um, my girlfriend. We weren’t supposed to have the door closed, so Mom barged in and saw it. I thought she was going to ground me or something, or say some shit about how ‘respectable young men’ don’t do things like that. But she got all flustered and turned around and left. I overheard her talking to Ima later that night, about how ‘it was time’ or whatever. Then she told me the next morning that there were certain things that a young man should learn from his father, and she asked me if I wanted to come down here for the weekend.”

Brian narrowed his eyes and rolled his lips into his mouth, then pushed his chair back and stood up from the table. “Would you excuse me for a moment?” he said, grabbing his phone off the counter and stepping out onto the balcony, so he could have a little privacy while he plotted all of the ways in which he could kill Lindsay the next time he was in Toronto. The phone rang and rang, and was probably only a second or two from going to voicemail, when Lindsay finally picked up. “What the fuck, Linds?” Brian spat, turning to look through the glass door at his son and Justin sitting together at the kitchen table in their Manhattan apartment. They were talking, god only knows about what.

“Brian,” Lindsay said pleasantly, her well-practiced-and-perfected faux surprise practically dripping through the phone line. “Good morning! Are you and Gus having a good time?”

“Don’t give me that bullshit.” Brian cut straight to the point, uninterested in Lindsay’s pleasantries. “You thought you’d just send him here to what, ask me about sex?”

“Ooooh… about that…”

“Don’t you think maybe that would have been something good to tell me when you were planning his little impromptu trip down here? That you expected me to give him some kind of birds-and-the-bees talk?”

“Oh, we’ve already covered the basics -- we did that a long time ago.”

“What the fuck did you want me to talk to him about, then?”

“Oh, just… methods… safety… things like that.”

“Methods?” Brian turned to look down at the street, where traffic was already starting to build. He had to keep his voice under careful control so as to not be heard inside the apartment, even though he wanted nothing more than to give Lindsay a very loud piece of his mind. “You want me to write him an instruction manual on how to fuck? He’s fucking straight, Linds. How the hell do I know what to tell him to do with his dick?”

“Well, you did it with me, more than once!”

“Then why didn’t you just tell him to do what I did? You seemed to like it.” Brian gave a mirthless laugh. “Or was it me who turned you into a lesbian?”

“You didn’t turn me into a lesbian, Brian.”

“That’s a relief,” Brian said sardonically. “But being that you’re a lesbian, and I’m the one of us who fucks guys, you’re the parent who knows how to please a woman. Shouldn’t you be the one having this little… talk… with him?”

“I don’t have the same parts he does, though…” Lindsay let her voice trail off, and Brian knew she was just making bullshit excuses anyhow, for why she’d shoved this very unpleasant parenting task off onto him -- without warning, no less.

“What the fuck does it matter if we have the same parts if we aren’t doing the same thing with them?” Brian was losing his patience now, and wondering how in the hell he was going to get out of this, now that Gus was sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for Brian to give him all of the details he was apparently dying to know about sex. “I haven’t been with a woman since college, Linds. You’re the only woman I’ve ever been with. And that was ages ago. What makes you think I’m qualified to tell our son how to pleasure his girlfriend? What was her name, anyway? Cassie? Katie?”

“Kasey. With a K.”

“So do you think Gus and Kasey are fucking?”

“I think it’s getting pretty serious, Brian. Kids are curious. Kids… do things. They experiment. And I’d rather not repeat our parents’ mistakes -- I want him to be informed. I want him to know he can come to us if he has questions.”

“So you ship him off to me for the weekend to put me through the Spanish inquisition of sex? Thanks a lot. I thought you and Mel were supposed to be the parents, and you didn’t want anything from me besides a cup full of jizz.”

“You mean more than that, and you know it, Brian.”

“Oh, I forgot, I also get to do all of the things you and _Ima_ don’t want to do. Well, I don’t want to do this.”

“I already told him you would.”

“That’s not my problem, being that you didn’t bother to fill me in.”

“But Brian--”

“But nothing. You can take care of this part, because I’m out. I’m not doing it.”

With that, Brian hung up the phone, resisting the urge to hurl it off the balcony to the street below. It started to ring in his hand almost immediately -- Lindsay, of course. He didn’t answer; he’d already said all he wanted to say to her. Now, he had to figure out what to say to Gus.

Both Justin and Gus looked up when Brian re-entered the kitchen, pouring himself a cup of coffee before he rejoined them at the table. “Everything okay?” Justin asked, giving Brian a vaguely amused look. It was no surprise to him that his husband had chosen to respond to the situation in an extra-dramatic fashion. 

The more Justin and Gus had spoken while Brian was on the phone, Justin had realized that Gus didn’t want the “talk” much more than he guessed Brian wanted to give it, and while Gus was curious about sex, he wasn’t particularly interested in crossing that bridge with his girlfriend quite yet, if ever. Like most boys his age, he was mostly focused on getting off, and curious about how it would be to have someone else do it for him. Unfortunately, the one time he’d chosen to experiment, his mother had served as the ultimate cockblock. 

“Sonny Boy--” Brian began, intentionally ignoring Justin’s question.

“--You had no idea why she sent me down,” Gus interrupted, his words more of a statement.

Brian shook his head. “Your mother neglected to inform me of her intentions.” He paused, giving his son a serious look. “Do you even want to be here this weekend?”

Gus’ eyes widened and he quickly held up a hand. “Dad, I _always_ want to be here when I visit. New York is, like, my safe haven, being with you and Justin. I can actually be myself and not think about what I say or whatever, like I do every thirty seconds when I’m home.” 

Brian nodded, satisfied with the answer, if his son’s emphatic tone wasn’t convincing enough. “And do you want to talk about your sex life with us?”

Now, Gus shrugged. “I mean… it’s not much of one. Like, Kasey put her hand on my actual dick once, and Mom fucking ruined it before I even came. So it’s not like I can really call it a ‘life,’ can I? Kase is super freaked now, anyway. I know nothing else is gonna happen at our house anytime soon.” 

“Well,” Justin reasoned. “Safe to say it’ll probably happen again sometime, with someone, right? Do you feel like you’ll be good to go then?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s not that hard,” Gus said, his tone verging on sarcastic. “Besides,” he added. “What do either of you know about having sex with a girl?” 

Brian looked affronted. “Bold of you to assume either one of us doesn’t have the sexual prowess to attract any gender we please.”

Gus made a face, giving his dad a wary look. “No offense, but ‘sexual prowess’ is not what I consider when I think about my _dads_. I know you guys do it, like, _all_ the time, but it’s not something I want on my brain.” To prove a point, he shuddered a bit as he finished his sentence. 

Justin laughed. “It’s okay, Gus-man. I don’t think either one of us blames you. But what your dad is getting at is that both of us actually _have_ been with women. It’s been a long time, but if you really have any questions about it -- anytime, it doesn’t have to be today -- we can try to help.” 

“Really?” Gus asked, still looking a bit uncertain about the topic. “Do I know who it was?” 

The next sound in the room was Brian choking on the large sip of coffee he’d just taken, spraying the table top with dark brown flecks of liquid. 

“You okay, dear?” Justin asked his voice full of innocent concern as he passed a napkin over to Brian, who simply scowled in response and mopped up his mess. 

“I’m fucking writing your mother out of my will for this,” he muttered, more to the table than anything else. 

Gus only looked more bewildered by this reaction, his eyes darting back and forth between his dads.

After a few seconds of amusedly watching Brian stew, Justin decided to throw him a bone. “I’ll answer you, Gus,” he said. “I had sex with Daphne once before.” 

Gus’ eyes widened. “Daph? Really? Does Conrad know?”

Justin laughed. “Of course he knows. Daph didn’t even know him when it happened. We were seniors in high school.” 

“Did you date or something?” Gus looked thoroughly confused now, because in his experience, though he knew Daphne was Justin’s best friend and had been for a long time, in no way could he remotely imagine them being sexually attracted to each other. Plus, Gus was pretty sure he’d also been told that Justin was a senior in high school when he’d first met Brian. 

“No, no,” Justin said, shaking his head. “She was curious what it was like, and I’d never been with a girl either, so we figured we were on even footing, and she asked if I’d help her out and be her first.” 

Gus let out a loud guffaw. “No shit. So… what was it like? Was it weird?”

“I don’t really remember that many specifics, to be honest with you,” Just admitted. “Like, it was a little awkward, because we were just going through the mechanics of it, or, at least, I was, and it felt a lot different than what I was used to, but I mean, it wasn’t awful.” 

“And, like, you still got turned on?”

Brian snorted. “He was fucking eighteen. Literally anything turned him on.” 

Justin rolled his eyes and shoved him in response, but didn’t argue. 

“Do you regret doing it?” Gus asked, his expression suddenly more serious.

Justin shook his head. “No, not really. I mean, it helped Daph because it made her less apprehensive when she finally had the chance to have sex with someone she was dating, and it was something I got to say I did too, plus I love Daph, and I don’t regret sharing that experience with her, if it had to be anyone.” He hesitated before adding, “I wouldn’t say I recommend just having sex with someone you know to ‘try it out,’ though. I mean, it changed things with me and her for a little while after.”

“How?” There was no denying the interest evident from Gus’ question, and it made both Brian and Justin realize that maybe their son had a little more investment in learning about the subject than he’d previously indicated. 

“Well, Daphne is straight. I definitely wasn’t, so there was no way that sleeping with her was going to change what or who I was attracted to -- especially since I was incredibly invested in building my relationship with your dad at the time.” 

He smiled at Brian, who returned the sentiment, his expression becoming uncharacteristically soft for the briefest of moments. 

“But,” Justin continued, returning his attention to Gus, “Daph confused what we’d done with having feelings for me, because, I mean, sleeping with someone is about as intimate as you can get. You’re allowing someone else to literally go inside your body. It kind of made things a little complicated for a few days afterward, until we really talked it out.”

Gus frowned. “Why is sex so complicated? Like, it sounds like getting off is the easy part, but then all this other shit comes with it.” 

Both Brian and Justin laughed. “It doesn’t _have_ to be complicated. Some people just make it that way,” Brian said, shrugging and taking a successful sip of his coffee. 

“So your woman experience wasn’t as complicated?” Gus asked, completely unaware of what he was about to walk into. 

Brian opened his mouth and then closed it again, unable to formulate a response. Again, Justin saved him for the moment, saying, “I don’t think that’s the type of sex your dad was referring to.” 

“Ima said you used to fuck everything on two legs,” Gus replied, his tone dry.

“She told you that?” Brian raised an eyebrow, trying to keep his voice even. It didn’t matter whether or not it was true (it pretty much was), but some things, Gus didn’t need to know.

Fortunately, Gus shook his head. “No, she would never say that to me. But I overheard her talking to Mom once when they were pissed at you about something. It was a long time ago, and she didn’t know I was eavesdropping.” 

“I see.” Brian nodded, tongue pressed into his cheek to keep himself in check. However, Gus continued on, undeterred. 

“Did you have sex with a lot of women too then, Dad?”

Justin smirked. “No, just one.” 

“Fuck you,” Brian groaned, glaring at Justin, though there was no real malice in his words. “Are you seriously going to make me do this?”

Justin smiled sweetly at Brian, batting his eyelashes.

“I can think of one person I won’t be having sex with tonight,” Brian muttered under his breath. He inhaled deeply, trying to figure out exactly how in the hell to say what he needed to say.

“Who was it, Dad?” Gus was clearly very curious now, and Brian could see there was no way he was going to get out of this without coming clean, so he might as well just say it.

“Your mother.”

Gus’ eyes went wider than Brian had ever seen them, and he sat there blinking at Brian, his jaw having fallen open in shock. “Wait…” he said slowly, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion. “Did you and Mom… Is that how you conceived me?”

Brian shook his head. “I offered, but I’m pretty sure Melanie would have killed me by yanking my balls off with her bare hands and stuffing them down my throat.”

“So… when was it, then?” Narrowing his eyes, Gus cocked his head slightly to the side, seemingly trying to make sense out of what Brian was telling him.

Brian wasn’t exactly making it easy, and he supposed that was on purpose. Although, really, all he was doing was delaying the inevitable. “I corrupted your sweet, innocent mother, in college.”

Justin snickered, and Brian shot him a warning glare.

“But I thought you two were just friends in college,” Gus said. “At least, that’s what Mom always told me.”

“We were more than friends. We actually dated for a while.”

“So you used to be… straight?”

“Oh, I was never straight.” Brian snorted and smiled a little at the irony. Then, his expression suddenly turned serious. He looked down and ran a hand through his hair. This conversation was going much farther than he would have preferred, and into a topic he'd never thought he'd be discussing with his son. “But, back then, I wanted to be.”

“I never knew that about you,” Gus said softly. “I mean, just with the stories I’ve heard and all…”

“Most people don’t know about it. It was a fucking farce anyhow. I was only kidding myself. But I had to know.”

“Know what?”

“That there wasn’t any way I could be straight. We dated for a few months. Had sex a handful of times. It was okay, I guess. I got off. She seemed to like it. But it wasn't anything like what it was when I fucked a guy. I think I knew it wouldn't be, but I had to try.”

“Why, though?”

“Let's just say Grandma and Grandpa Kinney wouldn't have been too pleased to have found out their son was a fag. And I'm sure Grandma and Grandpa Peterson felt the same about their dyke daughter. So we gave it a try. Needless to say, it didn't exactly work out for either of us. At least, not the way we wanted it to.”

“I guess I just thought you'd always been the way Ima says you were back when you and Justin got together. I never thought you gave a shit what anybody else thought. No excuses, no apologies, no regrets, right?”

Fuck, this was getting a lot deeper now than Brian had ever intended. The last thing he wanted to be telling his son was how his attempt at playing straight had been a sort of last ditch effort at getting his parents to love him, or at the very least, approve of him. As desperate and un-Brian-like as that sounded, it was the truth. It hadn't worked anyhow. Jack liked Lindsay well enough, and Joan had at least been fake-nice the one time they'd met, but his parents had still been just as indifferent to him as they always were. And neither Brian nor Lindsay was being true to themselves, so he wasn't sure why they'd ever expected it to work out.

Brian was trying desperately to figure out what to tell Gus when Justin jumped in, saving him. He knew he'd married that kid for a reason.

“Well, some people have a bit of a… blind spot, when it comes to certain aspects of your dad. Your Ima in particular used to.”

“You can say that again,” Brian grumbled.

Now it was Justin's turn to shoot Brian a warning look. But it wasn't necessary -- Brian knew he needed to play nice around Gus when it came to Melanie. Besides, things with him and Mel were much better now, and had been for the last several years. It’s just that there was no denying the rocky points they’d had, particularly around when she and Lindsay had gotten together, and in the first few years of Gus’ life, before the girls moved to Toronto. Justin used to say that the friction between them was probably because really, at their foundations, Melanie and Brian were actually a lot alike. Brian usually tried to dispute this, but secretly, if he really thought about it, he had to admit that Lindsay clearly had a type.

“So, like,” Gus cut in, clearly wanting to change the subject away from any bad blood between his parents, “after you were with Mom, and you both came out, or whatever… _then_ you had your first time with a guy?”

“Fuck my life,” Brian muttered under his breath, so quietly that only Justin caught it and smirked, but then he looked up and gave his son the most endearing smile he could muster. “Not exactly, Sonny Boy.”

Gus let out a long sigh. “This conversation is so weird. It’s like… I wish I never started it, but now I have so many more questions.” 

“Sex is a weird thing,” Justin offered, seemingly by way of explanation. “For most people, it’s the thing they keep the most private about their lives, so there might be aspects of a person that you wouldn’t expect based on how you know them in everyday life.” 

“So with that in mind...” Brian started, then stopped, letting his voice trail off because he still wasn’t sure he should be talking about this with his son, but he also didn’t see a way out of it, so he kept going. “Let’s just say that my first time happened when I was way too young, with someone it probably shouldn’t have. It wasn’t the way anyone’s first time should be. But my judgment was clouded and my options were limited, given what you now know about the, uh, formative years of my life.” 

“Fine,” Gus relented, realizing that he wasn’t going to get much more out of his dad. He also really didn’t want to make him feel any more uncomfortable than he seemed to be already. Instead, he turned his attention back to Justin. “So how about you?”

Now, it was Brian’s turn to smirk. “Have fun with that, Sunshine,” he taunted, hiding his smile in his coffee cup.

Justin, however, was prepared. “My first time with anyone, ever, was when I was seventeen, with your dad. He picked me up outside Babylon, took me back to the loft and--”

“WAIT,” Gus cried, holding up a hand. “I really, _really_ don’t want to know this. I’m sorry I asked.”

“Are you sure?” Justin asked, though there was no mistaking the fabricated innocence in his voice. Brian just looked at him fondly and shook his head. Not only had Justin managed to save his ass again, he’d also effectively derailed the trajectory of the conversation, and now, hopefully, they could steer it back to something that would actually be beneficial to Gus, being that they’d gotten stuck with having to deal with the topic at all. 

“Positive,” Gus said, nodding solemnly. “Point taken,” he added, indicating that he also realized exactly what Justin had done. 

Brian stood up to refill his coffee and Justin joined him to throw his smoothie ingredients in the blender while Gus finished off his bowl of cereal. They reconvened at the table a few minutes later, and Justin spoke first, hoping they could finish the conversation and put the topic to rest. 

“I guess what we’re both getting at, Gus, is that your first time is going to be uniquely yours, however it happens, so you can’t really rely on anyone else’s experience to inform what yours will be like. You just want to do what you can to make sure it’s with the right person. Because, when that happens it’s--” he paused to give Brian a meaningful look, “--absolutely incredible.” 

Gus sighed. “I guess that’s the frustrating part -- knowing when it’s the right time or person. Like, I like Kasey. She’s cool, and we have fun together, and yeah, she definitely turns me on, but I don’t love her, and I don’t know if I will. I feel like I’m too young for that, still. But does that mean I’m not supposed to have sex with her ‘til I feel that?”

“Well,” Brian said, fidgeting with his coffee cup as a slight distraction from the overall awkwardness of the conversation. “I think it depends on what you’re looking for. Sex can be an amazing physical release. It’s great for stress relief, it feels good, and it burns a shitload of calories. But if that’s all you want from it, you have to be upfront with your partner to make sure they understand that’s all it is. If that person thinks it’s coming with feelings and it’s not, it can become incredibly tedious and messy, which completely defeats the purpose.” He paused, glancing over at Justin and giving him a sly grin. “Of course, sometimes you can try that and no matter what, the little shit won’t listen and keeps coming back for more.”

“And sometimes you fall in love with him after all,” Justin replied smugly.

“Sometimes that too.” Brian rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. 

“When you have sex with someone you have feelings for, it’s a different experience,” Justin offered, looking back at Gus. “I won’t say it’s _better_ , because I think that really depends on the person, but it’s like there’s another added level, because you realize you’re sharing something that’s so intimate with another person, not just chasing an orgasm.” 

Gus nodded, seeming like that made sense to him. “So…” he scrunched up his face, unsure he wanted to move forward with his next question, but decided to go for it. “You said before that it’s intimate because you’re letting someone go inside your body, but, like, for you guys, what happens with the person who’s… _going_ inside? Is it different for that person? Like… if I’m with a girl, I’d always be that person, so does that mean it’s never going to be as meaningful for me?” 

Brian shrugged, his attention still mostly absorbed in his coffee cup, because even though he was talking and answering Gus’ questions, making eye contact while doing so still wasn’t exactly comfortable. “There are advantages to both sides. It’s almost always going to feel good on that end, partly because fucking _feels_ good. But if you know you’re giving your partner pleasure, and you’re really attuned to their needs, then it can be just as intense emotionally. It’s not to say there isn’t strictly physical gratification that can come from being on the receiving end either. It really just depends on what you want. For some people, though, being on the bottom -- at least for men -- can feel a little... vulnerable.” Brian paused and finally raised his gaze to look up at Gus, albeit hesitantly. “So you really need to trust the person you’re with.” 

“Oh,” Gus said, still processing all the information he’d just been dealt. Truth be told, he hadn’t given gay sex a whole lot of thought before, even though he knew his dads had it. He _really_ didn’t give the sex his moms probably had any thought, either, and still didn’t care to. But some of what both his dad and Justin had said was resonating with him. Honestly, he knew he wasn’t ready to have sex with Kasey; he was just thrilled to feel a hand other than his own on his dick for the first time. And he definitely didn’t want to give her the wrong idea about his feelings if he did have sex with her before they were ready. Especially because he hadn’t forgotten the one thing his dads hadn’t brought up yet, at least not directly -- pregnancy. And there was no way in _hell_ that he wanted to be a father anytime in the next decade, at least. 

Hearing his dad’s perspective on sex was interesting to him, though. Gus had always just assumed that what he’d overheard his moms say with regard to his dad’s sex life was more or less accurate. He knew his dad and Justin had a lot of sex, because they made no secret of their attraction to one another, and he knew they loved each other, so he’d always figured that that was enough for them, regardless of who else either of them had sex with. Honestly, he had a harder time imagining Justin having sex with other people, but it was hard to argue with what anyone said about his dad; the man was practically a walking sexual innuendo most of the time. 

But, since they were having this conversation, part of him was curious.

“Can I ask...” he began hesitantly.

“Ask whatever you want,” Justin said.

“Just don’t complain if you don’t like the answer,” Brian added teasingly, smirking at his son. 

Gus rolled his eyes, looking eerily like his father. “Do you guys… like, are you _only_ with each other now?” 

“We are,” Justin said, surprising him. “We have been for a long time now, contrary to what some may believe.”

“Not that it’s any of their fucking business,” Brian added pointedly. Justin reached over and took his hand, squeezing it gently.

“And do you… um, do you, like… share? I mean, um, like, the vulnerable part.” Gus looked so nervous about asking the question that both of his dads laughed gently. 

“Sometimes,” Brian admitted freely, surprising even himself with how easily that admission had flowed out of his mouth. But there was no taking it back now. “Not that often. Everyone usually has a role they prefer, but sometimes… it changes. It’s not something I’d be able to do with anyone else, though.” 

“You just have to be able to communicate your needs, and trust your partner,” Justin said. “We have a good arrangement, and I think we’re both pretty satisfied with it.”

“More than ‘pretty,’” Brian remarked, nudging Justin’s leg with his own. 

“Okay, that’s enough,” Gus decided, holding his hands up in mock surrender. “Thanks for answering.” 

“Do you have any other questions?” Justin asked, ignoring Brian as he stole a sip from his smoothie cup. 

Gus considered this, then shook his head. “Not really. Not now.” 

Brian slid Justin’s cup back over to him before giving his son a serious look. “All annoyances aside with what your mom pulled this weekend, you can come to us _anytime_. I mean that.” 

Gus nodded, smiling at both Brian and Justin. “Deal.” 

“And no matter what you do,” Brian added, his tone even more serious, “until you’re in a long-term, monogamous relationship, use a fucking condom.” 

***

Fortunately, the rest of the day passed without any further discussions about sex, and instead, they all showered and dressed then spent the day walking along the High Line, stopping to have a late lunch comprised of assorted shared goodies from Chelsea Market. Brian had even been convinced to partake in mini doughnuts from Gus’ favorite shop, even though he grumbled about what he’d have to do to work them off later. Gus pretended not to overhear Justin promising he’d make it worth his while. 

As dusk approached, they took a car to Columbus Circle and grabbed dinner, then walked a leisurely route through Central Park as they headed back to Brian and Justin’s apartment, stopping to listen to a lingering street performer with a guitar who played a couple of Gus’ requests. Brian gave him a generous tip before they continued on their way. 

As they stepped out of the elevator back at home, Gus’ phone rang, and he informed his dads that it was Kasey before excusing himself and making a beeline for his room, closing the door behind him. Brian and Justin figured they probably wouldn’t see him for awhile, and when that proved to be true, they eventually decided to call it a night, both eager to shower off the day and enjoy each other’s company more privately.

Brian sent Gus a text to let him know they were going to bed -- because the last thing he wanted to do was risk walking in on his son having phone sex with his girlfriend -- and to plan on brunch in the morning. They didn’t have to get him back to the airport until early evening, so it would still give them several hours to spend together before their weekend came to an end. 

“Well, today was… unexpected,” Justin commented, looking up from his phone when Brian walked into the bedroom. 

Brian plugged his own phone in to charge on the nightstand and let out a short chuckle. “Why, because I ate two doughnuts?”

“That’s exactly what I was referring to,” Justin deadpanned, realizing his husband was kidding. 

Brian sat down on the bed and let out a sigh. “Remind me to find something completely blindsiding and fucking awkward to send home with Sonny Boy one of these visits. It’s the least I could do for Linds and Mel.”

Justin moved around the bed to sit down next to Brian, putting an arm around him. “I don’t think it went badly. Yeah, it came out of nowhere, but I think we handled it responsibly… and fairly,” he reasoned. “Gus is a smart kid, he’ll figure out the mechanics when he’s ready. I think we helped to equip him with more important food for thought, even if it’s probably not quite what Lindsay had in mind.”

“I guess,” Brian said. “You always know how to handle things like this. I don’t know how you do it.”

Justin pressed a kiss to Brian’s neck. “ _You_ did a great job,” he said, his fingers lightly stroking the back of Brian’s head, causing the other man to gently lean into the touch. “Because you’re a great dad. You were honest with him, and gave him good advice.” 

Brian snorted. “Thanks, but is it bad that I’m hoping this doesn’t have to become a habit? I’m really not cut out for this shit.”

“I don’t know if any parent really feels like they’re cut out to have these kinds of conversations with their kids,” Justin chuckled.

“It’s fucking awkward.”

“But we handled it. Together.” Justin leaned in and kissed Brian, on the lips this time, easing his tongue into his husband’s mouth. As their lips parted, he gave Brian a wry smile. “You ready to work off those doughnuts?”

“Thought you’d never ask.” Brian pressed his lips against Justin’s in a passionate kiss as their bodies found their way into a horizontal position. He pressed his palms into the mattress on either side of his husband’s head and kissed him hard, rolling his tongue over Justin’s, then sucking his bottom lip as they separated.

Articles of clothing were quickly removed and discarded as things got more heated, until their naked bodies were grinding together atop the sheets as their tongues and hands roamed over each other. Justin's hands gripped Brian’s lower back, pulling him in closer, hungry to connect with his husband in the intimate way they’d spent most of the morning talking about. But he was surprised when Brian flipped them both over, so that he was the one lying on his back and Justin was on top. 

What followed was still a relatively rare occurrence for the two of them -- and one that surprised Justin, especially coming directly on the heels of such an uncomfortable conversation with Gus that he knew had already made Brian feel vulnerable. Brian looked up at Justin, his eyes silently pleading for what he apparently wanted, and before Justin could ask if he was sure, Brian had reached up and pulled Justin’s head down toward his, crushing their lips together in a bruising kiss that continued while Justin slowly fingered Brian open, preparing him. Brian let out a low moan directly into Justin’s mouth as Justin moved his fingers in and out, gently brushing against Brian’s prostate, until Brian was practically begging Justin to fuck him.

For Justin, it felt good to be inside of Brian -- to have Brian’s legs wrapped around his waist, physically pushing him in, deepening his thrusts. Their mouths were still connected, their tongues twisting around one another as they moved together in perfect sync, with the effortless ease afforded to them by eight years of marriage, the majority of which they spent being each other’s sole partner. They knew each other inside and out -- both literally and figuratively. Justin knew exactly what Brian liked, so he gave it to him, and he was rewarded with a much louder groan as Brian edged closer to bliss, coaxing Justin along as well -- every bit as turned on by how much his partner was enjoying this as he was by the sensations in his own body.

Justin felt the beginnings of Brian’s orgasm -- his ass tightening around Justin’s cock, followed by an involuntary series of rhythmic spasms as Brian tipped over the edge. Justin held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut as his own orgasm pulsed through his body, ending in his body collapsing on top of Brian’s, their skin sticky and sweaty. He pressed his face into Brian’s collarbone as he embraced his lover, feeling the rapid rise and fall of Brian’s chest underneath him.

“Thank you,” Brian whispered, between heavy breaths.

Justin’s only response was a soft, tender kiss.

They spent several long, blissful minutes with their bodies tangled together atop the now-damp sheets, before moving to the shower in their private bathroom, where Brian wasted no time pressing his second erection against Justin’s ass.

“Your turn to top, huh?” Justin teased.

“It’s _always_ my turn.” Brian smiled as he worked his own fingers in and out of Justin, eliciting the same sounds he had produced under similar ministrations not much earlier. “But sometimes I just need the reminder.”

“Of what?” Justin grunted, his forehead pressed against the slightly cool surface of the shower wall, his lips slightly parted as his breathing sped up once again.

“That you love me.” Brian paused and exchanged his fingers for his cock, pushing into Justin. “That you take good care of me.”

“Of course I love you.” Justin closed his eyes and savored the feeling of his husband inside him, hitting just the right spot every time with well-practiced finesse -- again, the benefit of eight years of marriage and more than a decade and a half together. “Who wouldn’t love this?” No sooner had those words left his lips than he was involuntarily crying out, already close to his second orgasm of the night.

“Shhhh,” Brian breathed into Justin’s shoulder. “Gus will hear you.”

Justin tried unsuccessfully to stay quiet as waves of pleasure washed over him once again, enhanced by the feeling of the warm water of the shower cascading down on their bodies. Brian’s release wasn’t far behind, and soon Justin felt a sensation of warm wetness as Brian came inside him with a guttural moan.

“You’ve always been loud when you come.” Brian grinned, once they’d both recovered enough to speak.

“How could I not be when my lover is a beast in the bedroom?” Justin turned and wrapped his arms around Brian.

“A beast, huh?” Brian bit down playfully on Justin’s shoulder.

“He’s the only one I’ve ever bottomed for.” Justin kissed Brian again, this time gentle and affectionate.

“Is that so, Mr. Taylor?” Brian raised a surprised eyebrow, but then smirked. “Although I suppose I never pictured your violin virtuoso as being a consummate top.”

Justin gave Brian a cheeky grin. “Let’s just say he always played second fiddle.” 

They finished their shower by washing each other's bodies, enjoying a different type of intimacy, before drying off and retiring to bed.

“Gus is a pretty lucky kid,” Justin said, propping himself up on his elbows so he could look Brian in the eye.

“How's that?”

“Well, he's got four parents who care about him, but most of all, he's got a great dad who really wants what's best for him.”

Brian shrugged and looked away. “I guess you could say I know exactly what _not_ to do.”

Justin curled his body into Brian's side, taking Brian's hand and interlacing their fingers. “You know, in the grand scheme of things, you've probably just survived the most difficult talk of fatherhood.”

Brian snorted. “Only because coming out wouldn't even be a thing with four gay parents.”

“Right. Hell, it's a wonder he didn't feel like he needed to come out as straight,” Justin chuckled. “And you know Linds isn't stupid enough to ask you to talk to him about drugs.”

“I could offer him a practical demonstration.” Brian pulled his lips into his mouth and looked down at Justin, whose head was resting on his chest.

“Yeah, I'm thinking if you ever want to see your son again, that probably isn't the best idea.”

“Maybe not.” Brian grinned. “But it sure would be fun.”

***

Sunday morning was much more relaxing than Saturday had been, with the three of them spending a couple of hours having brunch on the outdoor patio of a restaurant just around the corner from their building. Drinking coffee, mimosas, and juice and enjoying gourmet breakfast foods was far more enjoyable than discussing sex and intimacy with their teenage son.

Brian had just finished his egg white omelet and pushed the small plate containing his two slices of toast over in Justin’s direction when Gus suddenly shifted the topic away from the smalltalk they’d been making about summer plans.

“So, I talked to Kasey last night,” he started, looking down at his plate and playing with what was left on it, fidgeting with the fork and reminding Justin of Brian yet again. “I told her about our conversation. I mean… she knew why Mom was having me come here, so, like, she was curious how it went.”

“Oh yeah?” Brian asked, trying not to sound as interested as he was. As if verifying Justin’s observation of parentage, he began fiddling with the stem of his champagne glass, but was clearly listening intently.

“Yeah. She said she thinks you guys sound pretty cool,” Gus revealed, glancing up to give them both a pleased smile, but he quickly turned serious again as he resumed his train of thought and what he wanted to share. “I also told her that, um, I didn’t really think I was ready to have sex.”

“What did she say?” Justin asked, keeping his tone casual as he leaned back in his chair.

“She sounded pretty relieved, actually,” Gus chuckled. “She said she felt the same way, but she didn’t want to disappoint me.” He paused, furrowing his brow. “I told her it’s not about me, it’s both of us and making the right choices. So we think we’re going to keep things pretty tame, for now. So just, like… messing around, I guess. But we’ll save the big stuff for later, until we’re both ready.”

Gus was still carefully avoiding both of his dads’ faces, so he missed the beam of pride that flashed across Brian’s hazel eyes.

“That sounds like a good plan,” Justin said, speaking for both of them as he picked up a slice of Brian’s unwanted toast and took a bite. “I’m proud of you Gus-man.”

“What for?”

“For not letting yourself be pressured into doing something you’re not ready to do. I know this is a confusing time, and you’re probably getting messages from a lot of different angles, telling you that your relationships should be a certain way. But you have to do what’s right for you and for Kasey, no matter what anyone else says.”

Gus nodded, still mostly studying his plate, though he did glance up briefly at his dads before uttering a quiet, “Thanks.”

“And if you decide to tell your moms about this revelation,” Brian cut in, “make sure you tell them that you came to it because of our little talk, so I can be the hero for once.” He turned his coffee cup up so he could finish the last few drops, then put the mug down to reveal his smug smile.

“I’ll be sure to give you all the credit,” Gus laughed, looking up at Brian and rolling his eyes. “Anyway, thanks for being so open and honest with me. I’m glad we got to talk, even though I know it wasn’t an easy thing to talk about.”

“Sure, Sonny Boy,” Brian said, laying his napkin on his plate and pushing it toward the edge of the table. “And we meant what we said, that you can come to us with questions anytime.”

They spent the next couple hours wandering through the Met, since it was nearby and there was a sculpture exhibit that Justin had been wanting to check out. Gus figured, if nothing else, the museum excursion would earn him some brownie points with his mom, so he made sure to note a couple things he found interesting to share with her later. When he told his dad of his plan, Brian had just laughed and slung an arm around his shoulders, pulling him in for a side-hug and telling him, “You’re fucking amazing.”

Still full from their late brunch, they skipped dinner, instead lingering around Central Park til it was time to return to the apartment to pick up Gus’ bags and head back to Kennedy in time for his flight.

“You know, you should ask your mom about Guillaume sometime,” Brian said innocently as they stood together in the airport terminal, enjoying their final moments together before Gus had to head back home.

“What's that?” Gus asked, obviously confused.

Justin stifled a laugh, glancing sideways at Brian, who was hiding a grin of his own.

“Oh, she'll know,” Brian said bemusedly.

With that, they said their goodbyes and embraced outside the security checkpoint, before sending Gus on his way to board the plane that would take him back to Toronto.

As they rode home together in a hired car, Justin leaned his head on Brian's shoulder in the back seat.

“I'm pretty sure Linds is going to kill you for telling him to ask that,” Justin said, laughing a little.

“Payback's a bitch.” Brian shrugged. “Besides, I can't be the perfect dad _all_ the time.”

“I don't know,” Justin said, weaving his fingers through Brian's and resting their connected hands on the seat. “You're pretty perfect to me.”


End file.
